Popular message-swapper Nintendo Letter Box got an update today that lets you write and draw with coloured ink.

European 3DS owners can simply scan the QR code below to go straight to the update, which adds five coloured inks to the free application: red, blue, green, purple and orange. Black remains an option too.

To scan the QR code below:

Hold L or R on the 3DS Home Menu to bring up the camera.

Tap the chequerboard option — this opens up the QR reader.

Align the frame with the QR code and it will offer you a link.

Press A.

North American users can simply visit the eShop to be prompted to update.

To select the new colours tap left or right on the D-Pad. Note that you can only use one coloured ink per letter, so you can't draw multi-coloured masterpieces.

I am very pleased with this addition as I use this app a LOT. I be pimpin and any way to make mah girls look pretty is fiiiine wit meeeh!An update to get it to read faster from the SD card would be nice, but oh well.Ps. I aint no pimp!

What? No yellow? I'm outraged!!! Just kidding. This is a very welcome addition. I use swapnote a ton so this is great. Hopefully with the next update we'll be able to use more than one color in a message though.

I have been playing with my newly updated nintendo letterbox(swapnote) and I have to announce I am completely confused.The update did NOTHING!I can still only use BLACK ink. No colour options to be found.

I also would like to know what happens when you send a colour note to a black only owner.

@3dbrains You might need to send/receive or close your 3DS and wait for the app to update. At first I had no colours, then my app found new letters via SpotPass and then colours worked. Bit of patience will get your colours, no need to shout about it

If it's inaccessible to NA, why does this article state, "This update is now available around the world"?

@Alienfish, I wish Nintendo would change the style of the ink distribution in an update as well. I pride myself upon neat handwriting, so my messages always end up being much shorter than anyone else I know on Swapnote. The ink should only be applied as the stylus is moving, and not when it's idle. The current style of ink distribution causes writing neatly in cursive to be inadequate, because the stylus almost never leaves the touchscreen. It's almost as if Nintendo is encouraging sloppy handwriting. lol